i found an 85 MR2 non-turbo by my area that is 2,500 $ and has only 81k original miles and looks great.
problem, dad won't consider until he knows the safety records... and how safe they are because i notafied him that they ARE small...
now i plan to drive very safely but you never know and he wants more info...can anyone help me?? I was going for a 4runner but this car seems to good to pass up and i'm going to start driving very soon. Plus i don't see them this nice, no rust and it's always been garaged.
Toyota MR2's are no more or less safe than any other 1985 car on the road.
If you want to make your Dad feel more comftorable, go to your local Toyota dealer and ask them if there are any outstanding or pre-existing safety recalls for that car. I work for Toyota, and I personally am not aware of any.
As for the engine being in the middle of the car, this makes them a pain in the ass to work on, but doesn't make them any less safe that a front engine car.
Safety comes from individual driver. Safety involves driving carefully, defensively, and knowing your car's capability. People are so concerned with collision test and yet they completely pay little attention to accident aviodance (i.e. braking distance, handling, visualbilitiy, driving skill....etc)
Only selfish people think SUV and Trucks are safe. In an accident, involving a SUV and a small car, the SUV will completely destroy the small car. Thereby, having a higher risk of death.
On the other hand, in an accident involving two small cars, both drivers and passenger of both vechicles might walk away with minor injuries. Thereby, having a smaller risk of death.
As a big picture, the SUV is more dangerous. Having a bigger vechicle doesn't save people's lives. It kills one to save one. Its pathetic and illogical. But this is how our society has become...blinded by marketing and lack of knowledge. Feeding bias information to the consumers in order to survive in the competitive market.
My dad read some forums i think and he said that you have to be very careful in the rain and that several people said they are finiky and very prone to spinning out in the rain.
Also, a guy that i think might be lying (but am not sure) said that he pays 300 bux a month and will be soon swapping for a supercharged and have to pay much more...can someone fill me in on the insurance? because he's told me crap before he could just be giving me more false info.
He also said he's buying parts for the thing constantly and exaggerated, but he says it's definatly expensive and he keeps having to buy things.
Also he said there are to steel tubes along the bottom of the chassis that wear out somehow or corrode and cost a lot to replace and you have to replace them rather often?? And that the suspension parts wear out fast because of the extreme forces on the setup, and that the tires wear quicker because the way the car is made, it wears them out much quicker, and the 85 clutch is expensive and wears out kinda quick and all the things he said it made it seem like some really high end sports car that is a total money pit and there is a huge checklist you should go over before purchasing one... because looks arn't everything..
i would like some info from others on here because he told me once that the headlights can be popped up to slow the car down at a rate of 5mph per second, wich is total crap he hit the high beams switch and the lights went up then down.... so i have lost trust in him
does anyone know somewhere besides carreview.com where i can get more specific reviews and things on the MR2?
oh yeah, do you think it's a good idea to buy an 85, or are there flaws that would be better to look for a newer model wich has them fixed???
arrgh....
he said they made lots of suspension changes and the 85 has crappy handling...
Ahhh yes... the old headlights slow the car down thread .
If that guy is saying that he pays $300/month for insurance.... he is either really full of shit or he has had like 3 dui's and gets in accidents every other week. I pay $110ish for 9 months out of the year on my 1991 MR2. It is turbo'd but not according to the DMV... so it makes it a little lower. I think what this guy is trying to do... is keep you from buying it because as of now... he has a unique car. But if you get one.... it's just gonna be another mr2. Thats my opinion anyways.
If you find a good car that was treated nice... you shouldn't have to dump too much money into it. Cars are always something you have to put money into, but make sure you get a decent car that shouldn't need too much replaced.
You could say that any car could easily spin in the rain. If you lay full throttle and crank the wheel in just about any rwd car/truck you will start to spin. Although I feel that the mid-engine design does make it a little harder to recover from a spin... but trust me... learning how to recover it makes you a much better driver.
I have a 91 turbo and i am paying close to 1700 a year for insurance so that's almost 150 a month even with 5 speeding tickets and 6months of suspension. (HAHAHA i'm a bad driver).... yea i think he is lying to you. If you have any mechanic friends or if your dad knows someone who is a mechanic, have him go with you so that you can get a second opinion.
Visual inspections should beable to tell you if you are going to spend more money to fix the car and for MK1s, I have not seen one yet for more than 2500. The tubes on the bottom of the chasis are radiator pipes because the radiator is in the front. Corrosion of those pipes only means that radiator fluid has not been change over time. Either that or it has a leak and he's just dumping more in as it drains.
If he bought the parts to maintain the car he should have receipts. The guy who i bought the car from has receipts for smog, clutch job, oil change, etc and he gave it all to me at the time of purchase.
If you can, wait, because there's always another car out there. Check on Craigslist.com to see if there are listing in your area.
Right now i'm not sure what i want, but the part that just URKS me is the fact that if my dad had found good things about the safety of that little thing he would have bought it... it could still be there though.
I think the price is fair, but could also be talked down, but for only 81k miles (which by the way is LESS milage than my dad's 92 mitsubishi mighty max) is very good, and extremly good for a yota i think. I'm not sure because this guy at my school has BS'd me so much things are getting confusing. I'd talk to him about it insted of asking all this here but he's said so much crap it's just not worth it. what an asswipe...
I am very confused right now, I do not know if i want a 4runner or the little MR2. The MR2 has neat things i really like, the mid engine, i've always liked pop up headlights, and it's almost like a big go cart for the road, and when i've read reviews saying that it makes me want it more.
The downside is it's tiny, it only has 2 seats, it's prone to getting hit because of it's extremely tiny nature, and i don't know how safe somthing that small is..
I also want a 85-89 4runner because of the 4wd, room for friends, roll bar to keep them nice and safe, removable top, and it looks good and will look great with the mods i want to make to it, oh and i almost forgot; i think there's room for putting a sleeping bag in the back and campin...isn't there?
well anyway maybe i should just let time decide...but seeing one so nice so near to me was so nice for me because all the ones online are far away, and i was thinking i'd get whatever i came across first.....
I also like the supra's...my friends brother has one and it's nice, and it has a rear seat...but i don't know...do they compare at all to the MR2in handling?? or are they more for speed...
now that i think of it...if it's still there and i get honest reviews on safety and testamonials on it's wet weather handling he would most likely get it...THAT is what's bugging me... complete lack of information.
And i thought a lot about the MR2 thing, but he's a senior, and he'll be gone by the time i'm drivin it to school he's even moving outta state!
I wouldn't say Supra's (at least the ones in that price range) are faster or handle better than the MR2. I have an '82 Supra and it doesn't handle, accelerate or brake better than my MR2.
well how about an 87? the reason i mention that year is that there are two guys at school, one with the mr2 and the other with the supra...
When you rev an engine and then let off is the sound supposed to smoothly come back down or is it ok for it not to be perefct...because i sat in this guy's car and revved it....and I noticed the throttle didn't back off smooth when let off the pedal quick, it kinda crackled a little bit...not much but is that a bad thing??
what's it mean? I would think it should rev and idle back nice and smooth but i wasn't sure...
Can anyone elloborate some more on the safety? now there's another available to me but my parents dont like;
it's small, badish in wrecks
short, hard to see and there's less you can see far off
it's got the mid-engine rwd setup, which my dad has read about it spinning eaiser, or being harder to recover. I like it's layout, its one of the reasons i WANT the car, but i NEED evidence that it isn't that bad....
no airbags...mom now came up with that excuse...personally the idea of a rock hard baloon coming at 200mph toward my face dosen't comfort me at all....
PLEASE....if you have any more on convincing them it's not that bad please post...
there's an 87 with 130k miles on it for sale locally...its red, new cd player, and it's only 2,395 bux.... hows that sound?
thank you for your help and any more you can give!!! i wanted a truck but the MR2 just looks so much more FUN!!
Well, here's my take on it. I have a '71 Chevy Truck, and a '91 MR2 Turbo. So, when I wanna go cruise, or pick up some mulch..i take the truck. And the other 90% of the time, I take the duece.
Here's my suggestion for you. You need to figure out what you really need the car for. An MR2 is not something you want if you wanna haul people/stuff/anything. It's more of a one person daily driver/weekend racer. I like to take mine out SCCA racing, and that's where I've learned to control the spinning. Once you can do that, it's an extremely fun car.
If you're looking for more of a utilitarian vehicle, go with the truck. Not only will it get your parents out of your hair, but it will allow you to do more things with it. Then, in the future, you can get your MR2 and be the weekend warrior.
i guess i shouldn't start out with a sportscar, I should learn how to control a normal vehicle before miving to a fast, and more agile car.
and you're right, i have a gravel driveway, and i want to affroad...and i've always loved the look of toyota pickups... i just really like the look of MR2's and their cab and how fun they seem...
also..their price.... 2,300 seems cheap to me for a nice sportscar with great handling...
but thank you for your help. I'll stick to offroading for now... the turtle did win the race... and i won't be as tempted to go crazy fast in a high CG truck.
^^ I think you're making the right choice. I love the Toyota Tacoma 4x4 TRD. I think they are a really sweet truck, and that's what I'll be getting when I get rid of my chevy. I think you'll be a lot happier in the long run! And whenever you do start looking for an MR2...hit me up, and I'll give you a good deal!
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